Asian Cinema

My Incoherent Review of Lady Snowblood

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My apologies to my readers for missing a post last week. Online has become so loud and toxic that I noticed some of that negativity is showing up in the blogosphere. So, I took a short break from reading blogs and blogging to play Hollow Knight for my mental health’s sake. I was meaning to publish this review last Sunday but I had a hard time editing and polishing it up. Hopefully, my thoughts of the film make sense. Still feel that it’s not refined enough and I could elaborate more but then it will never be published!!! So here it goes…

Imagine a droplet of blood dripping one by one onto the clean white snow. Tell me what do you see? Do you see a Japanese flag? I want to say Lady Snowblood is a revenge story filled with death and bloody scenes. It is, but it’s more than that. Dig a little bit deeper, you’d find a nationalistic film that opposes western thoughts on greed and expansion. Wait…no I am simplifying it–it’s not a nationalist film, but more about corruption from outside influences. You can draw xenophobia from this film. However, I think most people would agree that corrupted officials can make a country bleed when money is involved. I wonder though… is money the root of all evil? Money is only as evil as the person who wields the weapon. That’s just my two cents as an outsider. Despite my opinion, I enjoyed the film for its artistic and poetic aspects. I like the color choices. You see the color red and white throughout the film which are used to enhance the revenge plot. If you are not familiar with the plot, it’s about a young lady who was born to avenge the death of her mother’s husband and her half-brother (Wikipedia summarized the plot incorrectly).

In the opening of the film, we see snow falling outside the window’s cell while female prisoners dressed in red, huddling together around a woman who has just given birth to a baby girl named Yuki, starring Meiko Kaji, the female protagonist. Instantly, I feel the coldness of the plot aligning with Yuki’s character. Another scene where the color red and white are used is when her mother’s husband gets stabbed in broad daylight for wearing a white suit. According to the pheasants, people in white suits are pawns of the government. The scene is so dramatic that it left an impression on me. Blood starts squirting and spilling onto the husband’s perfectly white suit in a flash. Moments ago, I saw a happy family taking a lovely walk in the woods. It’s a powerful scene along with the raging waves of the blue ocean. Like the flick of the Katana, everything is so sharp and happens quickly. Each scene and shot fall into perfect sync. I also like how Yuki drifts like a snowflake in the cold winter’s air, slaughtering the bad guys in the name of justice. More than anything, I empathize with the strong female lead taking justice into her hands with a blade! Karma can define one’s destiny. In Yuki’s case, she was born for revenge. She was born to avenge for the powerless people who are made to suffer under the hands of greedy officials. Overall, it’s a nice revenge film with a subtle hint of political criticism.

P.S.

I couldn’t find a decent trailer for this film, but it’s worth getting the Criterion Collection. It’s one of those films you’d want to watch over and over because it’s just that pretty.

Kwaidan: A Different Type of Horror (Part III)

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Please refer to my other posts for complete film analysis : Part I and Part II.

The last story in this film is In a Cup of Tea. This is the shortest story and my least favorite. I wonder why they put this story in the last section of the film. The ending of this story is as unfinished as the actual ending of the film. Did I confuse you yet? Keep reading.

In the year 1900 Meji era, a writer mysteriously left his book unfinished. The narrator in the film attempted to explain what happened. Around New Year, Lord Sado Nakagawa visited the area and stopped at the temple with his entourage at a temple in Hongo. Kannai one of the traveling men became thirsty and went to get a cup of water, but soon an apparition appeared in the water, smiling at him. He tossed the water out, but the reflection of a strange man kept appearing when he scooped a new cup of water. Irritated, he drank the water.

Later that evening, the strange man in the cup of water appeared in the manor in human form. He called himself, Heinai Shikibu. Frightened by the appearance, Kannai claimed to never have seen him, when asked if he recognized the mysterious man. Heinai Shikibu got upset when Kannai threw the water on the ground earlier that morning at the temple. Kannai reached his sword and attacked Heinai Shikibu. And then, the “wounded mysterious man” disappeared behind the wall. No one believed him when he said there was an intruder entering the manor.

The next following night, three visitors came to visit Kannai. They claimed to be Heinai Shikibu’s retainer. The visitors said Heinai Shikibu will come back on the 16th of the month to get his revenge. Kannai became angry and started to swing his sword at the visitors. Those ghostly visitors could not be killed because they were not real. Kannai turned into a madman, laughing hysterically because he could not defeat them.

Then the scene went back to the writer, who left his book unfinished. The publisher came to check on the writer as the deadline was approaching. It appeared that the writer suffered from writer’s block and could not come up with a satisfying ending “to a story about a man who swallowed another’s soul.” So he left it for the publisher to come up with an ending. The ending of the film showed the writer inside a big water vase.

I personally think this story is confusing no matter how many times I watched it. Perhaps, there are cultural references and lore that I’m not well aware of. However, if the author intended to make his audience confused, he succeeded because I wouldn’t know how to finish the story if it were given to me. But it’s sure a haunting tale even though it’s not scary. I still enjoyed the camera shots and the overall production.

In summary, I enjoyed watching Kwaidan. It’s relaxing and beautiful to watch. I have always liked older films and good horror stories. It does something to my soul. It heals it just like having a cup of tea.

Note Originally posted:
November 10, 2019 3:23 am

Kwaidan: A Different Type of Horror (Part II)

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Hoichi the Earless is the third story in the film. The longest story out of all the four stories and the most complex to dive in, but artistically on point. I watched the segment repeatedly, analyzing every scene from the painted red/orange sky to the watermelon.

It started off with a gloomy song about the last battle fought between the Genji and Heike clans. Three thousand people total fought along the shore of Dan-no-Ura.  In the song, it mentioned how the Heike clan got defeated.  And thereafter, the sea became haunted for 700 years. To console the dead samurais, a temple was built.  And thus, the strange haunted tale between Hoichi, the blind musician and the supernatural began.

Hoichi played the musical instrument called biwa and became a master at reciting the battle’s story. He even surpassed his teacher. One day, he was called by a spirit to perform at Akamagahara, which was actually a cemetery for the Heike spirits, located near the temple. Hoichi agreed to visit Akamagahara thinking it was an honor to play in front of a high rank.

The next day, a dead body appeared on the shore—the villagers blamed the sea ghosts for the cause of death. Then we later find out another ship had sunk on that very same night Hoichi recited the battle story. Apparently, when the story had been recited, someone will die.

Hoichi’s encounter with the dead caused him to become pale. He would sleep during the day and visit Akamagahara at night. The master of the temple and everyone began to take notice of his disappearance at night and his odd behavior and wonder if they could trust him.

One pouring night, Hoichi left again for Akamagahara. They found Hoichi reciting the last “Battle at Dan-no-Ura.” This section was beautifully well pieced in the story. Throughout each disappearance at night, we don’t see Hoichi reciting the battle. It was until the last portion of the battle song when he was finally discovered that we see him reciting to the dead. Little small choices like this from the director made all the difference to imply the scope of this horror tale. It’s haunting.

It was then, the master of the temple confronted Hoichi that he had been lured by a menacing spirit. Soon, it will possess and kill him. In order to save Hoichi from the spirit, scriptures were written all over his body except for his ears. He was told not to respond to the spirit when it called for him.  And so, during the evening, just when the spirit was about to call for Hoichi to attend the cemetery, the spirit got angry because he could not find Hoichi but only his ears (the scriptures made his body invisible). The spirits then tore Hoichi’s ears apart out of the menace. As a result of the supernatural’s vicious attack on Hoichi, the incident led him to rise to fame to the point that even the living lord requested to hear him perform the Heike Tale. Hoichi did not decline. As long as he’s alive, he will play his biwa with all his soul to mourn those thousands of spirits.

How is this a haunting tale, you might wonder? It’s haunting in the sense that the spirits could never be put to rest without replaying the whole battle at Dan-no-ura over and over and over. For 700 years, the shore where the battle took place between the Genji and Heike clans had been haunted. Hoichi’s willingness to mourn for the dead also made it haunting. It’s bittersweet, but also frightening of Hoichi to play for the dead, but the dead should be left in the past.

By far, this is my favorite horror tale from the film. It’s eerie and was well done cinematically. Stay tuned for my final analysis of this film.

Note: Originally posted on Nov. 9, 2019; Revised on April 5, 2022

Female Prisoner 701 Scorpion (1972) Review: The Obedient Citizen and Her Government

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I’m glad I watched this film last in this series. It took a bit of detective work but I enjoyed the ride. Everything makes sense why Scorpion possesses the spirit of a dead girl and why she harbors a deep hatred toward cops. This film got political fast and I am afraid that I don’t have the credibility to discuss Japanese culture in depth. It would require heavy textbook research. I can, however, point out that this film is a satire of Japanese society.

Scorpion symbolizes the average citizen who devotedly entrusted all her faith to her protector. Her lover, a narcotic cop is the symbol of the government. The Japanese flag in the beginning and towards the end helped me put the two together. Similar to how the common people get screwed by their leaders, Scorpion was betrayed and deceived by her lover. He used her to infiltrate the drug scene to which she was later exposed and then raped by the Yakuza mob. It was all planned out so that he can get promoted and move up the hierarchy chain. Talk about police corruption. The song that keeps playing over and over in all of the films makes sense now. Once he made love to her, he tossed her away. No one wants to be violated and betrayed by the person she/he trusted. It’s better to watch your own back than entrust it to others is the message I got from this film series.

Overall, I was blown away by the cinematography despite the stripping and ripping off the clothes, revealing the naked women bare breasts, and the mild pornographic scenes which all serve a point and add a little humor. One memorable scene is when one of the female prisoners spilled her plump peach-like breasts over the male guard’s face and raped him. I can hear her saying through her action: “You like breasts so much? I will force feed you!” Such a serious plot needs to be laughed at. Without the dramatic effects, I wouldn’t understand the metaphors in this film. I highly recommend this film series if you are starved for some good morbid sense of humor. I had a good laugh and I’m happy that the heroine was able to avenge the crime that has wrongfully committed against her.

I love Scorpion. Such an amazing woman. She is the Japanese Joan of Arc! And now I must go out into the street, partially showing my breast to defend justice. After all, I’m a feminist!!!

I’m just kidding. I just had to rhyme.

If you happened to stop by my blog for the first time, please check out my other reviews for this film series which are not in chronological order, but in the order, I watched the films thank you for reading:

Female Prisoner Jailhouse 41 (1972) Review: Bad Boys Are Dogs!

Female Prisoner Scorpion 701’s Grudge Song (1972) Review: Your “Thingy” Will Get Sting

Female Prisoner Scorpion Beast Stable (1973) Review: Strike A Pose in Red District

Female Prisoner Jailhouse 41 (1972) Review: Bad Boys Are Dogs!

Halsdoll4 Comments
I am addicted to laughing. I might have just found one of the funniest films I have ever watched. A big fan of Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction here, but this one tops it.  Don’t get mad now. I am not a man-hater but the portrayal of men in this film is a bit accurate; they are kind of like wild dogs when they are not domesticated.  But the women in this film are just as bad. In fact, they are as brutal as the men—even more so, I would say. I had a good laugh seeing both genders behaving like animals, battling against each other. The scenes are so shockingly grotesque that I watched them three times in a row! I am just that shocked! The stunningly beautiful main character Scorpion, played by Meiko Kaji, is the most dangerous prisoner. Get too close and she will bite. The police had to lock her in the underground facility where insects resided. For a year, she was in insolation.  One day, the head of the policemen got promoted and decided to treat her like a human and invited her to celebrate with him along with other female prisoners. His sadistic way of taming the female prisoners into good girls led him to promotion. How ironic is that? But this is where the fun starts. It’s time for the girls to break out of jail and put those bad boys back in their place! I won’t go into details about the plot because I just don’t want to spoil it for folks who have not seen it. Apart from the plot, the cinematography is superb. As I mentioned before, I watched it 3 times, well 4 times now. It is so well done and the dialogues were well thought out that if I ever feel the need to laugh, I will just watch this film. It’s that good.

The One-Armed Swordsman (1967): The Servant Leader

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It’s so difficult not to fall in love with the one-armed swordsman as he exhibits all the masculine traits of what it means to be a man. Ideally, he really is the perfect man. I watched this film several times–not just for the poetic concept of masculinity, but for the cinematography. It’s a visually attractive and soothing film to watch in the evening, just when the sun is about to set.

The story is about an orphan, the son of a servant belonging to a prestigious martial arts school that is famous for its swordsmanship. In the opening of the film, the assassins attempt to assassinate the headmaster, teacher Qi, but failed. Instead, the protagonist’s father dies in his place. At the mercy of the protagonist’s father, the headmaster promises to train the orphan like one of his nephews as his disciple.

Even though the orphan is treated well by the headmaster, our hero, the orphan, never sees himself above a servant and continues to accept his social status as a servant. This hard-headed “arrogant” personality irritates the headmaster’s daughter because she has taken a liking to him but he refuses to acknowledge her by her name, suggesting that he is aware of his social status. The protagonist remains distant from her, not because he finds her repulsive but because he is a true gentleman.

Rejecting the headmaster’s daughter who resembles a spoiled brat princess causes lethal consequences. They say a woman’s wrath is quick-tempered, unforeseen, and unpredictable like the changing weather–one moment it’s sunny, and then in a flick of an eye, it’s pouring rain (I hear this generalized statement often in martial art films and I have to disagree with this statement, but I will use anyway because the story is told from a heterosexual male perspective). Out of anger from losing in a duel using just bare hands, she chops off the hero’s right arm, leaving him maimed.

Time and again, being a gentleman, the hero will not lay a hand on the headmaster’s daughter even though he just got his arm chopped off. Instead, he flees and falls into a boat that belongs to a beautiful woman, who happens to be an orphan herself. This is one of my favorite scenes. Fate is kind enough to bring him to a kind-heart maiden who not only nurses the hero back to life, but who is able to help him gain his strength.

Humiliated at the fact, the hero cannot defend the maiden when they were harassed by two martial arts disciples, the maiden offers him a powerful martial arts book that contains only the left-handed portion. We learned the martial arts book was thrown into the fire because the maiden’s mother blamed the book for taking her husband’s life. Magically, it seems that it is fated that this book is meant for the hero. Ironically, he becomes stronger with the new martial arts technique than he was when he still has his right arm.

This new technique not only helps the hero defend himself but also came in handy when he learned the headmaster’s daughter has been captured by the dangerous martial artist named Smiling Tiger. To make the story short, the headmaster’s daughter is saved, and the bad guys are eliminated. The hero is then given praise for being a true martial artist worthy to become the headmaster’s successor. But this recognition and leadership got turned down. His father died because of martial arts. The maiden’s father died because of martial arts. The hero chooses to abandon the martial arts world and become a farmer, living a peaceful life with the country girl, who saved him.

How noble, isn’t it? Willing to die for your fellow brothers and deny the recognition and the leadership role offered to him. The hero is a farmer, maimed, and a simple man. What I find so admirable about the protagonist is how he sticks to his true self. He has always identified himself as a servant, and he continues to fight like a servant. It’s hard not to fall in love with such a character. You use your strength to protect and not use it to harm others. He really is a true leader. I realized from watching the film that sometimes the manliest of men is the one who lives a quiet, simple life.